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Stewart v. United States, 366 U.S. 1 (1961)
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General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Stewart v. United States, 366 U.S. 1 (1961)
Stewart v. United States No. 143 Argued February 21, 1961 Decided April 24, 1961 366 U.S. 1
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA CIRCUIT
Syllabus
Petitioner was tried three times in a federal court for murder. At the first two trials, he did not testify in his own defense, but he did so at the third trial, at which the main issue was whether or not he was insane when the offense was committed. On cross-examination, the prosecutor alluded to the two earlier trials and asked, "This is the first time you have gone on the stand, isn’t it, Willie?" Petitioner’s counsel moved for a mistrial on the ground that it was prejudicial to inform the jury of petitioner’s failure to take the stand in his previous trials. The motion was denied, and petitioner was convicted.
Held: the question was prejudicial; the error was not harmless; a mistrial should have been granted; and the judgment affirming the conviction is reversed. Pp. 2-10.
107 U.S.App.D.C. 159, 275 F.2d 617, reversed.
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Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Stewart v. United States, 366 U.S. 1 (1961) in 366 U.S. 1 366 U.S. 2. Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=EC261RJK75UG8SE.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Stewart v. United States, 366 U.S. 1 (1961), in 366 U.S. 1, page 366 U.S. 2. Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=EC261RJK75UG8SE.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Stewart v. United States, 366 U.S. 1 (1961). cited in 1961, 366 U.S. 1, pp.366 U.S. 2. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=EC261RJK75UG8SE.
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